Now that we've moved past all the relationship baggage between Blake and Ayame, we can start focusing on the Phantom Cup once again! Time for the last matches of the quarter-finals to begin!
KedharS: And also the kind of friend we all wish we could have.
Just a Bad Writer for Fun: That's quite an interesting thought. But I'll say this, if it wasn't for Ayame being there for Blake when he returned from Galar, he would have fallen to a very dark place that he might not have found his way out of.
Rus0804: Fluff is essential.
Aquahaze675: Yeah, imagine a dopey lovestruck look.
Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings
Chapter 555
While for many students the anticipation for the second half of the quarter-finals and the match between the Commander and Raizer Volt had caused the day to feel unbelievably long and drawn-out, for Blake, it was very peaceful and had passed by quickly, unlike yesterday.
Not having to fight for himself made the wait go so much faster. He wasn't that invested in the tournament results, so he could just relax and take it easy, even though he did secretly have people he wanted to see lose. He was just a spectator now, rooting for the chance that Ian would be able to kick Gerard's ass. He deserved it for beating Aya like that, but more importantly, because he was scum for everything he had done to Elaina.
Between that and his lunch date earlier, Blake was in a pretty good mood when he entered the stadium with his friends. The general atmosphere around them was pretty chill as well, with Cynthia in particular being filled with energy.
"Oh man! Today's going to be so awesome!" Cynthia was a naturally hyper girl, but at this point it was like she was a fireball, her scarlet hair dancing around as she practically vibrated in place, oozing with excitement.
"Calm down, you look like you're going to have an aneurysm," Reiner warned her.
"I can't help it!" Cynthia groaned. "It's so, so cool! The Commander himself is going to be using his full team of six pokemon against Raizer Volt, and his Zeraora! Didn't you see how awesome that legendary pokemon is?! It totally went blow for blow with Rayquaza, how are you not pumped?!
"Oh, I'm excited," Reiner assured her. "Just… not going nuclear about it."
"That Zeraora was strong, but you saw the Commander fight against Misato, right?" Nick reminded her. "And that was just with three of his pokemon. Do you really think that Raizer can defeat a whole team of six pokemon with just that Zeraora?"
"Yeah, because he has," Callie replied.
Everyone looked at her in surprise.
"Wait, what?" Reiner asked. "What are you talking about?"
"He used to be the president of the Pokemon Fight Club, before he turned the position over to me," Callie explained. "So I saw him go toe to toe with that Zeraora up close and personal. I know what that pokemon is capable of."
"So it really is that strong?" Cynthia asked, her heart pounding with excitement. Somehow, she was looking forward to the match even more! It didn't even seem possible! And yet it kept bubbling out even more.
"Raizer entered the Eight Leaders by challenging the First Leader, this was before it was me, and beating them. Then the Second Leader, then Mirar, then Dokukage, and then Elle," Callie continued. "He beat all of them, all their parties, with just that Zeraora. Alcea managed to beat him, but even then, it was a close match."
Callie had a hard look on her face. She was taking this very seriously.
"Don't underestimate him. He's powerful, that Zeraora of his is a real monster," Callie said, nodding. "Of course, that doesn't mean I think it's going to be an easy match, the Commander is really powerful too, maybe even the strongest trainer at this school. So to fight against his whole team… Zeraora vs. the Commander, I honestly don't know who's going to win."
An eager smile crossed her face, and her eyes brightened as she turned to Nick, and then back to Cynthia.
"But you're right, it's definitely going to be an amazing match," she agreed.
"I'm excited for Ian's match myself," Sango said. Callie's expression soured at the mention of his name, still a little sore over her match against him the week before.
"Really? Of the two, it seems like the less exciting match," Nikita said, adjusting her glasses. They stopped at the stadium, and entered with the other students. "I definitely find myself looking forward to the Commander vs. Raizer, like most of the other people here I would guess."
"I mean, good point," Sango admitted. "I'm not a big fan of battles so I don't know what the real match to look forward to is, but I do know that Ian's a buddy of mine, so I'd like to root for him. I'm kinda looking forward to it because of that, you know?"
"I'm with you," Ayame nodded in agreement.
"Oh, you're friends with Ian too?" Sango asked.
"What? No, I don't know the guy," Ayame said, waving her hand dismissively. Her expression darkened and she narrowed her eyes into one of her trademark glares. "But Gerard kicked my ass, and I want to see him go DOWN!"
Blake grinned, and gave her a side hug. "That's my girl."
Sango rolled her eyes, part of her wanted to vomit. She still had a lot to work through on the whole "Blake and Ayame dating" thing.
"Personally… I'm just happy that today's matches are going to be different," Kitty whispered, surprising everyone.
Everyone turned to look at her and she timidly glanced up, her red eyes moist as she looked back at all of her friends, her face looking a little brighter and healthier than it had been over the last few days. She was still pale, of course, but at least she didn't look like she was about to lose her lunch. Given the circumstances that was a pretty good improvement.
"Oh, right!" Julia realized, brightening up herself. "There won't be any people using Shadow Pokemon today! The Phantom is the only one left in the tournament who uses any, so there's nothing you have to worry about!"
Kitty nodded, smiling a little, her eyes lighting up.
"Yeah," she murmured. "Hopefully I'll be able to take this one easy." That fact made her relax a lot more. This afternoon promised to be a bright one.
While they continued to discuss the merits of the tournament and what they were looking forward to, the group of friends made it through the stands and eventually arrived at a place close enough where they could all sit together. It wasn't long enough of a row for everyone to get their own chair, but there were empty seats ahead and behind so everyone could sit together in a big clump.
The easiest way to divide, of course, was by couples. So Nick and Callie sat in the front row with Reiner and Nikita, while Blake and Ayame sat in the row behind them. Kitty and Julia behind them in the third row, while Sango sat next to Ayame and Cynthia sat next to Sango, leaving a spot open in the aisle right next to Blake.
Blake was starting to wonder if Andy would show up, but no. It was someone he was much less happy about seeing, even if he was technically her friend.
"Ugh," Kate said, making a face as she noticed them. It wasn't much different from the faces everyone else wore as they looked at her.
But there was one thing that was different, though, and it made everyone take notice. And then take notice again.
And then rub their eyes a few times to make sure they weren't seeing things.
"There is no need to be rude, Kate, is it?" Alcea asked, raising her eyebrow. She was standing next to her associate, in the stands… like a normal person! Wouldn't… didn't she have, like, her own box or something that she could be watching from? The fact that she was here was an absolute shock, no one knew what to make of it.
Alcea turned to the other students with a winning smile and held the hem of her skirt, raising it in a curtsy of greeting. "Bonjour."
"Milady, I don't know why you wanted to come sit with Blake and his friends," Kate said, crossing her arms and huffing.
"We're your friends, too," Sango reminded her, Kate's expression softening a little as she looked away from the girl and her Castform.
"I was wondering what it would be like to spend time speaking with him," Alcea replied, shrugging her shoulders. "It is as simple as that."
She stepped around Kate and sat down beside Blake, turning to him and giving him a beatific smile that sent a twinge of jealousy through Ayame that made her momentarily want to side with Olivia's vendetta against her.
Blake himself could smell the whiff of roses in the air, but didn't let it faze him. A few months ago it might have, but holding himself the way he did helped relax Ayame's guard, seeing that he wasn't tempted by the beautiful queen.
"But where am I supposed to sit?" Kate whined. She looked around and saw that there was an empty seat next to the other Kate… or Kitty, as her name was. Alcea nodded her head to it and Kate nodded glumly, sitting down behind the redhead with a sigh. "But I wanted to sit next to you, milady," she mumbled under her breath.
"Sorry about your loss yesterday," Blake apologized.
"I did the best I could, is it?" Alcea tactfully said, shaking her head and waving her hand. "I have nothing to be ashamed of. It will take a trainer of a higher caliber than myself to defeat the Phantom, that is all there is to it."
Kate let out a grumble.
"Milady, you were amazing!" Kate cheered her idol on. "It's all because that guy did a dirty trick, that's all! I don't accept that as a legitimate loss, nobody does! Those Shadow Pokemon are just plain not fair, they're too powerful!"
Alcea had no comment on Kate's outburst, keeping a placid smile on her face as she stared out at the battlefield, where the announcers had just started to enter their box. Blake admired how skillful she was at deflecting Kate's annoying tendencies.
She must have an unbelievably high amount of patience, Blake wondered. He felt kind of shady that he admired that almost as much as he admired her ability at fighting.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Akira and Blake turned to greet Lila, surprised at the skip in her step and the smile on her face.
"Well, someone's in a good mood," Dakota noted.
"Something good happen?" Akira asked.
"Darla is doing better," Lila explained, her positivity practically bursting out. According to the doctors, she'll be ready to leave by tonight! I'm so happy, we're going to have a dinner together to celebrate her release!"
"Well, that's good," Akira smiled. "So that means that our role here is almost finished, then?"
"Finally," Dakota sighed with relief.
That made Lila's expression sour.
"…Unfortunately not," she grumbled, walking past the two of them and sitting down in her seat. "She says she's still not up for announcing."
Akira and Dakota glanced at each other and sighed. It was worth a shot.
"Well, no need to focus on stuff like that!" Lila chirped, immediately perking back up. She snatched up the microphone and addressed the audience, putting on her positive persona. "We've got some important matches to talk about! A lot of people have gathered here today to see these awesome fights!"
"I can't wait myself," Dakota agreed. "The coverage on my publication yesterday about Zeraora vs. Raquaza? And the hype I built up for the match between him and the Commander?! It sold so much you wouldn't believe! And now, we've got another match that promises to be even better! People love mythic pokemon, and they're really getting hyped up! I'm just happy I got to see something so amazing first-hand and write such a great article about it, it was maybe the most exciting article I've ever published!"
"…And for once you weren't lying," Akira added. Dakota shot him a dirty look.
"That match was amazing, and you know it!" Dakota yelled back. "And this one is going to be even better!"
"Yes, yes, we all know that the match between the two brothers is going to be something to look forward to," Lila assured her. "But there's something else we need to think about right now, and that's the fact that there's another match to get through first, you know!"
Dakota and Akira nodded in agreement, they could talk about the Commander's match against his brother later, first they had to handle the battle between Gerard Alkwest and Ian Davidson that was beginning now.
"Alright, hello everyone!" Lila said, turning back to the crowd. "I'm your host, Lila Seelie! Today, we're continuing the quarter-finals to determine who moves on to those last two slots of the semi-finals! But first, we have an important announcement to make!"
Dakota turned to her, confused. "An announcement?" Even a rumor mill like Dakota couldn't think of what she was talking about.
"Yes," Lila said, nodding, a solemn expression on her face. "Due to extenuating circumstances, Dokukage is withdrawing from the tournament."
This caused a few people to gasp. Ayame's mouth dropped open and she turned her head to look at Blake, whose expression was hard. He narrowed his eyes and didn't say anything. Everyone sat in silence for a moment to let those words sink in.
"Odd…" Alcea murmured.
"Wait, so what does that mean?" Akira asked, confused. "Does that mean that since he's withdrawing from the tournament, that Blake gets his spot in the semi-finals instead?"
"Oh! That would be interesting!" Dakota said, nodding eagerly.
Lila shook her head.
"It doesn't work that way," she replied. "Blake doesn't magically win his last round just because the victor drops out. No, with this we have to give the Phantom a bye from the semi-finals, and send him right to the finals."
"What?!" Dakota protested. "But that's not fair!"
Dakota's outrage was shared by a lot of people in the audience, including Blake's friends.
"BOOOO!" Cynthia booed. "Dakota's right, that's no fair! Let Blake move onto the next round! You can't just drop out halfway through a tournament, Blake had a real shot!"
"Yeah," Sango agreed. "Let him get back in!"
"Thanks, guys," Blake smiled, shaking his head. "But it's fine. Don't worry about it."
"I'm against this too!" Ayame scowled. "It's like Dokukage was only there to knock you out, and I'm not cool with that! You should at least get to fight against the Phantom and try to fight against those Shadow Pokemon of his!"
"If I couldn't beat Dokukage, then there's no way I could have beaten the Phantom," Blake said calmly. He glanced at Alcea. "If Alcea couldn't win… I don't think I could have really done much of anything, you know?"
Alcea gave him a sympathetic glance, nodding apologetically.
"Well, at least you're right about that one," Kate agreed, giving him a nod that was in no way apologetic, and 100% matter-of-fact. "If her highness couldn't beat those unfair Shadow Pokemon then you, who couldn't do anything against her, would have your pokemon ground into paste."
Classy as always.
"…Thanks, Kate," Blake dryly replied.
"Listen!" Lila declared, trying to keep the growl from her voice. She wanted to stop dragging this out and move it along, it was eating into her time for dinner with Darla. "There are a bunch of questions I'm sure, but we need to focus on the next round first!"
She took a deep breath to regather herself.
Akira and Dakota could see there would be no more discussion on this point, and so they decided to drop the subject.
"Now then!" Lila said, going back to full perkiness. "Time for our third round of the quarter-finals of the Phantom Cup! Ian Davidson vs. Gerard Alkwest!"
And with that, everything was swept away and the next round of the Phantom Cup began.
Across campus, someone else was dealing with feelings of anxiety brought on by the Phantom Cup, and wasn't sure how she was supposed to feel right now. The past few days had been a serious tax on Elaina Bishop's endurance, putting up with the nauseating feeling of Shadow Pokemon that she had caught on the wind.
She wasn't even sure if she should watch Gerard's match on the television. He had told her that it wouldn't be a problem, she could watch the matches today without much worry. But she hadn't worked up to the courage to do that. She wasn't sure why, she just hadn't.
It's starting soon, Elaina reminded herself, reaching tentatively for the television. I really should watch… I will watch, yes!
Elaina reached for the TV to turn it on, when a knocking on the door startled her. She whirled around, surprised, not expecting a guest at this time.
Elaina rose from her bed and slipped her mask over her face, walking across the room to see who it was that could be visiting her. When a tournament like this was being held on campus, it didn't make sense that anyone would be coming by.
And yet there was clearly someone at the door. Elaina opened it, glancing tentatively through the crack to see who it was.
"Hello there," Sylvia Driscoll greeted her with a smile. Elaina gasped behind her mask, stumbling back in surprise. That was the last person that she had expected to encounter!
"Sylvia Driscoll?" Elaina sputtered. "What… what are you doing here?"
"…Oh, how mean," Sylvia pouted. "Is that any way to talk to an old friend?"
"…Friend?" Elaina asked, regaining her composure and glaring at Sylvia from behind her mask. "You think that we're friends?"
That was insanity. Elaina didn't have friends. She didn't WANT friends like Sylvia, from what she'd seen and heard, not to mention the way she had battled against Elaina? Sylvia was about the furthest thing from a friend Elaina could think of.
"We aren't?" Sylvia asked, shrugging her shoulders. "Don't you remember how the two of us got on back at the Fall Festival Tournament? I've been thinking about reaching out to you for a while now, but there was never a good time!"
Sylvia took advantage of Elaina's confusion to stroll into her room without an invitation, a wicked smile on her face. Her Shuppet floated behind her, snickering a little.
Elaina didn't know what to say, but she knew what she remembered. She remembered how Sylvia had goaded her in their match, how Elaina had almost lost control, the pain that she had endured there, it was just too much for her to think about. Elaina wanted to scream.
"I thought… it might be good for you and I to have a talk," Sylvia purred, her eyes shining with a wickedness that set Elaina's panic sensors blaring loudly. She froze, not sure what she was supposed to say.
I'm not sure what to say either. But I will say that this is certainly going to be a problem, Sylvia finally turned her attentions towards Elaina!